Herkimer College student receives Vanguard Student Recognition Award

Herkimer County Community College student Aidan McFerran, of Delmar, NY, is one of eight students statewide selected to receive the 2020-2021 Vanguard Student Recognition Award. McFerran is a senior in the Physical Therapist Assistant program at Herkimer College.

The Vanguard Award recognizes outstanding post-secondary-level students enrolled in career and technical education (CTE) programs that prepare them for careers that are not traditional for their gender.

McFerran was nominated for the award by Associate Professor Karen Jones, who also serves as the program director.

"Aidan is a highly motivated and well-respected student in the Physical Therapist Assistant program," Jones said. "He sets high standards for himself and works hard to achieve them. Aidan is a team player and helps other students within the PTA program when he is asked. He is a role model who truly wants to see others succeed as well as himself. I am confident Aidan will continue to strive to do his best and meet the goals he sets for himself in his life and in his career.”

McFerran has earned academic honors at Herkimer College and has demonstrated excellent clinical skills in his fieldwork experiences. He has been actively involved in the Physical Therapist Assistant Club and has worked as a lab assistant in the PTA lab for the past year.

McFerran is currently enrolled in a virtual Combined Sections Meeting for the American Physical Therapy Association, which he enrolled in on his own to advance his education further during the pandemic. His goal is to continue his education and earn a doctorate in Physical Therapy.

“I am honored to be a recipient of the 2021 Vanguard Award," McFerran said. "Thank you to Dr. Jones and the Physical Therapist Assistant program at Herkimer County Community College. The program motivates me to never stop learning.”

The Vanguard Award Ceremony will be held virtually at the Nontraditional Employment Training (NET) Conference in April 2021. The Vanguard Award is administered by the New York State Nontraditional Employment & Training (NET) Program, Center for Women in Government & Civil Society, and is sponsored by the New York State Education Department through a Carl D. Perkins grant.

For more information about the Physical Therapist Assistant program at Herkimer College, visit: www.herkimer.edu/pta